It’s fair to say that it’s been very cold all week. It didn’t actually rain for roughly 10 days which quite honestly feels like a bit of a triumph. We’ve coped with frozen water troughs, and if I’m perfectly honest, rejoiced in the hard frozen ground whichas made such a refreshing change from wading through mud. However things became a bit more tricky when the water started freezing in the buckets in the actual stables. However, we do have a working kettle in the tackroom now, so this wasn’t an unsurmountable problem. That is until Wednesday when disaster struck. The tap on the yard finally froze solid and refused to be revived by boiling water. The tap on the house didn’t want to know either. . So now we’re hauling water from the house to the yard. Hal has been doing the water carrier relay. Back and forth with a wheelbarrow loaded with our enormous water carrier. However, yesterday morning I had to carry the water carrier from the house to the yard, as pushing A wheelbarrow whilst carrying a stick doesn’t really work. I had to make two trips, because I’m not strong enough to carry the water carrier when it is completely full, and on my second trip I really struggled as I had put too much water in and the container was too heavy for me. However I managed it, so my horses did not go thirsty.

All this cold weather has been having quite a serious effect on Hal. Although he has not been formally diagnosed, we believe he has a condition called Raynolds syndrome. This means that, when he gets cold, The blood vessels in his hands contract too much, his hands go pale, and numb, and can be very painful if he touches something. He has really been struggling this week. To try to combat the problem, he has some hand warmer sachets called Little Hotties, which he keeps in his pockets, or can slip inside his gloves if necessary. You just shake them, and they warm up, staying warm for about eight hours. Well they say that necessity is the mother of invention, so when

He was struggling with his hands the other day, Hal had a sudden lightbulb moment. If he placed a little Hottie hand warmer under the water troughs and buckets would it prevent them from freezing? Erm, well yes actually it would! It’s not perfect, but it definitely makes quite a difference.

Yesterday though things got a whole lot more challenging. Storm Emma and the beast from the east had a hot, or should that be cold, date in Devon. The wind blew, and it snowed big-time, and because the Wind blue, The snow drifted. Enter a whole new level of difficulty for yours truly.

It’s not for nothing that some people refer to snow as blind man’s fog. It is the most difficult thing to orientate yourself in if you cannot see. Snow dead and sounv, so you lose all those audible clues, like echoes for example, that you rely on to tell you where you are. Neither can you feel all those tactile clues you get from the ground through your feet. Not just the official tact tiles that you get at road crossings and junctions et cetera, but also those unofficial things tell you where you are, like that even piece of pavement for example. Curbs, sleeping policeman, Grass verges, steps, ramps, and low walls, all things that you might use to tell you where you are, become hidden by deep snow and snow drifts. Using a long cane is extremely difficult, and even Guide Dogs can struggle.

It took us over an hour last night just to give them water. Hal hauling a wheelbarrow through thick drifting snow, and me floundering around trying to find the path I use several times every day. The thought of having to get water to the horses by myself this morning nearly reduced me to tears.

I did it though! I only took a gallon, but added to the remains of their overnight water it kept them going.

January is an odd month really. You make New Year Resolutions on New Years Eve, get all pumped up about a fresh start, and all the amazing things you are going to achieve in the coming year. Then, you wake up on New Years Day , maybe a little hung over, but full of enthusiasm for the year ahead…
And January happens. It’s a month with attitude. A dark and gloomy 31 day, resolve breaking, soul sapping, battle of wills between you and the forces of nature.

Last year howling wind, torrential rain, and the kind of mud that made The Battle of the Somme look “a bit damp” , were the theme for the entire winter. So far though, this winter has been a lot dryer, and thankfully, much less windy. Oh boy is it cold though!

Personally, I love cold, crisp, clear, frosty days. Give me breaking ice on field troughs ova having my arm ripped off by wind powered stable doors any day. However, even I find having to break ice on buckets that are inside the shed, well, beyond the pale. Hal really doesn’t cope well with the cold, and has gone into hibernation. We hand both had the obligatory post Christmas bug. So, apart from serving their needs, we haven’t done anything much with the horses except a few brief walks in hand. Thankfully they are all well, and coping with the cold extremely well. There are a few creaking joints here and there, but those lovely thick, unclipped coats, feathers, manes, tails, and beards, are really doing their job.

Sadly Breeze is finding her change of situation difficult to cope with. . I keep reminding myself that that it’s very early days yet. She’s only been here a few months, after twelve years as a trekking pony. However, i can’t help thinking we might have made a mistake in buying her. She’s a real sweetie to handle, and, although quite dominant, seems to have settled with the others. The trouble is that Breeze is terrified of everything! She’s constantly on red alert, even when In her stable. When being ridden he is both nappy and spooky, and it seems to be getting worse not better. She is not proving to be the confidence giving, supdr safe school mistress we need, far from it! As a result Hal’s already fragile confidence has died a death, along with his desire to ride. The whole idea was for us to hack out together. I despair of that ever happening now.